Menu

How To Live Like A Carefree Dog

I saw this sign today and it brought a smile to my face. It reminded me of a yellow Labrador Retriever we had when we lived in the state of Washington several years ago. His name was Winston and he was one of the best dogs we had ever had.

One memory that always jumps to the front of my mind when I think about Winston is the time he literally protected our kids from certain demise when an overly protective mother cow thought the kids were too close to her baby.

We lived in Washington State at the time on a forty-acre plot of land that was owned by this really nice couple. And on this land they had a herd of longhorn cattle. We only had two kids at this time and they were standing at the fence looking at the cows when one of the cows began to charge the fence. Our dog, Winston, saw this was happening and ran across the property to jump in front of the kids and began to bark at that cow. The cow got spooked and turned away. Now that’s a cool dog!

Another memory I have of Winston is how spunky he was. He loved to run. There were several cattle gates on the property that opened up to a pasture where there was a little pond. When we would open that gate Winston would take off like someone had lit his tail on fire and jump into that pond. That was one happy pooch! He loved the water.

“I will never say you have a choice to just stop living in fear or to stop living with guilt. It isn’t that easy. The choice you can make is the choice to cry out for help.”

So, this sign got me thinking about Winston again. How care free and happy he was, especially when the gate was open. He chose the path of pure freedom with the wind flopping his ears around as he ran through the pasture. We have that choice too. We can live a life behind the gate of fear and guilt or we can live a life like someone opened the gate, in pure freedom like my carefree dog.

If you are in the throes of fear and guilt it may seem like there is no light at the end of the tunnel. It is gripping and because of that state of mind you may not know where to turn or how to start the path to freedom. I will never say you have a choice to just stop living in fear or to stop living with guilt. It isn’t that easy. The choice you can make is the choice to cry out for help. Keeping all of this pent up will only perpetuate it and make the hole deeper and harder to climb out of.

We serve a God that can, will and wants to open that gate to freedom so you can thrive and run through the pasture with the wind in your hair and a smile on your face. Can you find the strength to call out to him? Can you claw your way to the top of that pit and poke your head out? That is the choice you need to make. That is the start to being able to live like someone left the gate open.